Machine for granulating tobacco.



Ptentad Oct. 10, I899.

A. ,PICKEN. MACHINE F08 GBANULATING TOBACCO.

4 Sheais-$heet 1,

. ATTORNEYS. 1

(Application mm Feb; 17, 1398.

WITNESSES:

(Ho Mndal.)

m: Noam: mm m. mfourua, \usnmar Patnted Oct. I0, 1899 A. Human. v MACHINE FOB GRANULATING TOBACCO.

- (Application flied Feb. 17, 1898.) (No Model.)

4 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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WITNESSES a no; ncflqls min! 00. Procro-umo WASHINGTON. n. c.

No. 634,476. Paitented Oct. |o,--|a'99.

A. FIGKEI'I.

MACHINE FOB ERANULATING TOBACCO.

(Application filed Feb. 17, 1898.) I

(No Mod l.) x v 4Sheqts-Sheet 3.

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No. 634,476; Patented Oct. I0, 1899.,

A. PICKEN; MACHINE FOR GBANIJLATING TOBACCO.

(Lpplicltion filed I'ab. 17, 1898.)

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

IN vE/vrom Mald Ioiiew.

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WITNESSES v UNITED ST TES PATENT OFF CE.

ARCHIBALD PIoKEiv, or ROANOKE, VIRGINIA.

MACHINE FOR GRANULATING TOBACCO.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 634,476, dated October 10, 1899.

Application fi led February 17, 1898. Serial No. $70,650. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern: a

' Be it known that I, ARCHIBALD PICKEN, re siding at Roanoke, in the county of Roanoke and State of Virginia,have invented a new and useful Improvement in Machines for Granulatin g Tobacco,of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description. Y

My invention is an improved machine for granulating tobacco, and has for its object, among others, to provide mean s for accurately grannlating the tobacco-leaves, for feeding such leaves to the granulating devices, and for gaging the cut by means of devices connected with the cutting devices; and the invention consists incertain novel constructions and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective View of my improved machine. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section thereof.- Fig. 3 is a detail enlarged section in the region of the cutters. Fig. 4: is a similar view showing a different position of the cutter-head. Fig. 5 is a side view of the feeding devices. Fig. 6 is a top plan view thereof. Fig. 'Zis asectional perspective View of the cutter-head from the rear side. Fig. 8 is a similar view from the front side. the base-cutter. Fig. 10 is a detail view of one of the spacingblocks or plates. Fig. 11 shows one form of transverse cutter, and Figs. 12, 13, and lei illustrate a construction of transverse and upright cutters which I will presently describe.

In carrying out any invention I provide a suit-able frame, which may consist, as shown, of side plates A on opposite sides of the infeedbelts B and O and supported at the front end of the machine by the legs D andat the rear or discharge end of the machine by the legs E, which have the guideways F for the cutter-head G, and bearings F for the shaft H,- which is provided with the eccentrics I for driving the cutter-head and with the cam I the cutting devices.

Fig. 9 is a perspective View of It is preferred to make the lower belt longer than the upper one, so a portion of it will be exposed at the front end of the machine to serve as a table to re ceive the tobacco to be granulated, which is .then taken and conveyed by the belts B and will not be fed during the cutting operation,

but only while the knives are clear of the feed way. This is accomplished by providing on the shafts B and O of the belts B and ratchet-wheels B and G which are engaged by the pawls B and C on a slide-bar J, which is moved longitudinally by the cam J on the shaft H, such slide-bar J being guided by the studs J operating in a longitudinal slot J as shown in Fig. 5. By this construction it will be seen the belts B and O are 0perated on the return movement of the cutterhead to feed the tobacco forward one step. At the discharge end of the belt 13,1 support in the casing the basecutter K, which extends transversely and has its edge Kfprovided with the vertical slots K which correspond to and receive the upright cutters of the cutter-head in the operation of the machine. i

The cutter-head G is connected by thepitmen G with the eccentric I on the shaft H, so it will be reciprocated as the shaft; His turned. lprovide in this cutter-head a transverse cutter L and the vertical cutters 'M,the latter being preferably stepped and arranged to operate in the slots K on the base cutter, and in slots X in the top transverse bar X of the feedway. (See Fig. 4.) This is important as it confines the tobacco in the'feedway allowing it to escape in no way until'cut off by the cutters, and also to be used as an edge with slots the same as K, K, andK? when the cutters shown in Figs. 12, 13, and 14 are 'used in the upward cut. r

In the construction shown in Figs. 2, 3, 4, 7, and 8 the upright cutters M are spaced apart, being preferably so held by spacing blocks or plates N, (shown in d'etail in-"Fig. 10,) and the blocks N and cutters M are'formed to fit the undercut seats G and G of the cutter-head, so such cutters and blocks may he slipped into the cutter-head from one end and held by suitably applying and securing the end plate of the cutter-head; but the cutter when desired, as shown in Figs. 12, 13, and

14, in which construction the uprightcutters M are formed with an enlarged shank M and the transverse cutter I? is two-edged and is provided with slots L through which the upright cutters are passed, so they will be held by their shanks M fittiugin the slots L the upright cutter portions extending in advance of the transverse cutter, as best shown in Fig. 14. By this construction the transverse cutter operates to cut in both directions and to hold the upright cutters in position without the intervention of any separate filling or spacing blocks. The upright cutters are not to be limited to an edge stepped into three cuts, but may be made in other shapes if desired; but the stepped construction is important, as the purpose in having the cutter-blade stepped istwofold. First, it cuts the required distance into the tobacco with three successive cuts, the first step making its out, say, one-sixteenth of an inch, the second step, coming after, cutting one-sixteenth of an inch deeper, and the third step, coming still later, cutting another sixteenth of an inch, completing the out. Thus are secured three cuts virtually with the same stroke of the blade at one motion, and it requires lesspower, just as with three strokes you can more easily cut a stick in two than with one stroke. The second purpose in having the cutter stepped is to avoid disarranging the position of the tobacco, as is done in other machines where the whole out is made at once by one blade. The whole cut of the blade is made in three parts, each step cutting a third of the whole cut and at the same time only using the oneblade and one motion. The desired size of the out, one-eighth of an inch, being so small and the nature of the leaf making it so easy to disarrange its position makes it necessary to use the best method, and from experiments it is found that a blade stepped as shown gives the best results.

By the above term disarranging 1 mean that if the tobacco remains steadily in its position while being cut by the transverse cutvter and the upright cutters, the size and shape of the particles are uniform and of desiredv shape and size; but if it is disarranged by the passage of the cutters that uniformity is destroyed and the object of the machine frustrated. Therefore the cutters best adapted to retain this steadiness are of great importance and the success of the machine depends greatly upon the same. 7

It will be noticed that the upright cutters extend in advance of the transverse cutter and operate as the cutter-head descends to slit the tobacco longitudinally in advance of the transverse cutter. By this construction as the cutter-head descends the transverse cutter cuts off transversely the portions of the tobacco which have been slitted by the previous operation of the cutter-head, thus securing a granulation of the tobacco as de-' sired.

In the cutter-head below the cutters I support a gage-plate O, which may be adjusted toward and from the mouth of the machine or toward and from the base-cutter K to vary the size of the out. In adjusting this gage plate 0, I may employ the brackets 0, secured to the gage-plate and overlapping the rear end of the bar 0 on which such gageplate is secured, and held to said bar 0? by screws or bolts 0 By fitting one or more filling-blocks 0 between the bracket 0 and the bar 0 I am able to adjust the gage-plate as desired.

In the operation of my construction motion is suitably given to the shaft 11, which open ates the cutter-head and also the feeding devices hefore described. As the cutter-head descends its transverse cutter will first reach the base-plate, as shownin Fig. 3, and will cut off a short length of the tobacco which has been fed between the belts B and 0. As the cutter-head further descends the upright cutters will pass through the tobacco in front of the transverse out, such upright cutters passing into the slots K of the base-cutter, thus slitting the tobacco which is fed by the belts B and 0. As the cutter-head ascends it will reach the position shown in Fig. 2, bringing the gage-plate opposite the space between the belts B and O, as shown in Fig. 2, where it will operate to limit the feed of the tobacco by the belts B and C. It-is at this position that the advance step is made in the feed motion, the feed operating only while the knives are clear of the throat of the feedway and the gage directly in the front of same and not during the return stroke of the cutting-head and slide J, as stated, the cam J completing the action while the knives are clear of the feedway.

The bar X above the throat of the feedway acts as a base against which to cut when the double-edged knife shown in Figs. 12, 13, and 145 is employed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patcut, is-

1. In a machine for granulating tobacco, a reciprocating cutter-head comprising a frame or carrier, blades or cutters secured thereto and having their cutting edges stepped, each step projecting in advance of the preceding one, and the transverse cutter carried by said head substantially as set forth.

2. In a machine for granulating tobacco, the combination of the framing having a feed.-

7 same, said bars having slots, and the cutterhead reciprocating across said feedway and having upright cutters operating in the slots of the upper feedway-bar and of the base bar or cutter substantially as set forth.

3. In a machine for granulating tobacco, a cutter-head comprising a frame having the opposite undercut seats, the cutters having at their ends portions to fit in said seats, and

the filling-plates interposed between the cutters and having at their ends portions fitting in the undercut seats of the frame and the transverse cutter carried by said head, substantially as set forth.

4. In a machine for granulating tobacco, the combination of the frame having a feedway, the reciprocating cutter having the upright and transverse cutters and provided with the guard or stop plate arranged out of line with said cutters whereby it will face the feedway when the cutters are out of operative position, the base-cutter and one side of the feedway being provided with slots receiving the upright cutters and means whereby the tobacco may be fed, substantially as set forth.

5. A machine for granulating tobacco comprising the framing, the base-cutter and upper transverse feed Way-bar provided with slots and the cutter-head having a transverse cutter and provided with upright cutters projected in advance of the transverse cutter and arranged to operate in the slots of the base-cutter and in the slots of the upper transverse bar of the feedway, substantially as set forth.

6. Inamachineforgranulatingtobacco,the combination of the framing, the infeed-belts, the base-cutter having slots spaced apart, the cutter-head having transverse and upright cutters, the latter being arranged to operate in the slots of the base-cutter and upper transverse bar of the feedway, a gage-plate carried by the cutter and intermediate'operatin g devices between the cutter-head and the feedbelts, whereby the feed-belts will be operated, substantially as set forth.

7. in a machine for gran ulatin g tobacco, the combination of the framing, the reciprocating cutter-head, the feed-belts, the slide-bar for operating said belts, and the shaft having a cam for operating the slide-bar and provided with eccentrics by which to reciprocate the cutter-head, substantially as set forth.

8. The machine for granulating tobacco, consistirv of the framing, the base-cutter having upright slots, the upper feedway-bar having slots, the reciprocating cutter-head having a transverse cutter, and provided with the upright cutters'projecting in advance of the transverse cutter and arranged to operate in the slots of the base-cutter, and in the slots of the upper feedway-bar, the feed-belt provided with the ratchet-wheels, the longitudinally-movable slide-bar having pawls en gaging the said ratchet-wheels, and the shaft having a cam by which to operate the slidebar and provided with eccentrics connected with and adapted to operate the cutter-head, substantially as set forth.

9. A machine for granulating tobacco com prising a framing, the cutting devices, the feed mechanism including the opposite reversely movable ratchet-Wheels, theslide-bar extended adjacent to said ratchet-Wheels and having pawls engaging the same and adapted to operate the ratchet-Wheels, and the shaft for operating said slide-bar, substantially as set forth.

10. A machine for granulating tobacco comprising the frame havingafeedway and provided at one side of same with a base-cutter provided with slots, and a cutter-head reciprocating back and forth across said feedway and provided with upright cutters spaced apart and having their cutting edges stepped and with a transverse cutter, such upright cutters being arranged to operate in the slots of the base-cutter substantially as setforth.

AROHIBALD PICKEN.

\Vitnesses:

J. A. SVVAVELY, LAWRENCE S. DAVIS. 7 

